Stop with chasing distractions and FIX the real problems. It is urgent!... and while you do that, mind your language.

Earlier this week, I had the great honour of spending a morning with an inspiring, passionate, hungry (not literally), driven team of young people working amongst the more than 5000 non profit organisations operating in the slums of Kibera... not Kenya... Kibera; and they are the only one (that I know of anyway), that has set it's mission to address mental health issues amongst the young people of this community. I sat in this very decorated "mabati" structure, and listened to Amisa-the founder of this organisation dream. Now, you may not know them, and you should-take a break and find them here: Niviishe Foundation you will not regret getting to know them. I am telling you the truth! Go read their site since you are here, this missive is not going anywhere, come back to it, so you understand my passion and pain.

Amisa is not at peace. She recognises that she is in a unique space, she understands-deeply, personally that the need is great. She acknowledges that the journey is long, arduous even, and she, like the goals of the organisation, is resilient in her pursuit of the vision in her mind. Amisa, allowed me into her mind's eye. She painted a vivid picture of a Centre for peace, hope, tranquility... a safe space for her persons of concern. The young people who are facing complex mental health challenges in her community. Challenges that are not acknowledged, and neither are they understood and in fact, challenges that are further complicated by the wider society. A society whose support and cooperation she desperately needs. Notice, I did not mention that the challenges are unknown... there has been years of awareness creation, we have chosen not to internalise the messages, so yes, they are known, they are seen, they are witnessed everyday by us. Go get a newspaper... infact, take another break because this is a long missive, and google the stats, stories and headlines for just Kenya today. One incident, is one too many, let me know how many you find-and how complex the issues are. I love to learn.

(Back to the ranch)... I left Kibera feeling super charged and inspired, my heart was full, and my drive to be there for her in anyway I can, was fired up. Thank you Amisa and team, I truly am, because you are. However, I was pensive, reflective, disturbed, sad even... Amisa is worried, but not about reaching the community members of concern-she is them. She is not worried about what to do with them and for them once she connects with them, and for how long. Amisa is not worried about understanding and then getting them what THEY need, or serving them in the way that THEY need her to- let us be clear, this is not about her lacking time or skills or knowledge- and there is certainly no doubt about her commitment to walk this journey with them. Actually, this is not even whether she will personally be able to afford doing this work. Amisa is worried about how she will go about CONVINCING those with the funds that can realise her dream, that she is trustworthy, believable, and even more disturbingly, that her dream is valid. Think on that for a second. How sad that this is the source of her compounding anxiety! I wonder what the funders worry about daily, and whose worry is the most paramount... risks? if the forms collect adequate data to inform their decision? if the systems will capture the change?... this is not gaslighting, they are all valid, but... anyway...

Meanwhile, we got the opportunity to observe her graffiti filled surroundings and laugh at stories of the ongoing turf wars she is having with her neighbouring non profits (there are several CBO/NGOs in this one compound, and they are all jostling for visibility-I will not mention exactly where they are, because it may cause her unnecessary attention). We had this extra time, because "Little Cabs" who is an alternative to Uber, will not come to this "far" place! (yes, this is a "mulika mwizi" plug-Kenyans know what I mean, if you do not, ask someone) I will now move on from this line of events, because that could be its own article. Moving on from this commercial potentially triggering tangent!

I eventually found my way back to my office in a building close...but far from Kibera, and switched hats... from contributing to strengthening the capacities of local actors doing impactful and humbling work on the continent, to evangelising to those with resources about the work of Amisa and the need for them to figure out how her vision can be realised, with minimal stress to her. (I have this privilege and I am fired up to use it for her today) So, I dived into matters advocacy with a renewed sense of urgency. Understanding that because Amisa is too busy with the first response work, I must find ways to keep her hope for the future alive. Eliud Kipchoge said that no human is limited. Indeed, I was determined to break the limits that I felt were in my mind, and do this for Amisa and many others like her. After all, I am amongst friends, we have a common goal-uplifting underserved, often marginalised and less resourced communities.

So now I am sitting in this zoom meeting, supercharged. I need to play my part. It is urgent-the issues are serious, and time sensitive. The call is filled with international colleagues and we are all like minded, walking the same path we thought, here to discuss the critical issues: "decolonisation" -could have been development, Aid, philanthropy, localisation... and important people were speaking. Key decision makers were in the room. I listened, and waited for an opportunity to put a spotlight on the issues that were still fresh from my earlier day's experience and/or get some good news to take back to Amisa.

Ladies and gentlemen, I did not sleep that night. I was disturbed. Smart people said smart things that day. Lots of things were articulated eloquently that day. It was "deep", "inspiring" "profound"... talking about what NEEDS to be done, in order for this decolonising to happen, and once it does, then money will flow. Always, coming back to us "locals" and our issues, and our ability to meet the needs of those who seek to "decolonise". What we must do, to make them feel better and confident enough about release these funds. Folks... I logged off the call and faced the reality-Amisa is still far from realising her dream, and yet I know, her dream MUST come to life. My heart begun to bleed. Very little of what was said in that room, could translate directly to Amisa. Not in the way that "they" needed it to get to her. How can she also engage in that stuff they are talking about and still give attention to those who are deserving-her persons of concern.

I bled the next day, and it showed up. It showed up as impatience. I was very curt to colleagues, I was intolerant of small mistakes, I was on edge. I ranted alot. I wanted to be left alone to think. Where is the disconnect? why must Amisa wait for what seems like decades when the issues she is tackling are not waiting? Suicide rates amongst young people are growing daily, unpredictably, tragically... can we afford to wait for the big funders to "figure things out?"

I took a break and caught up with my family chat group and got involved in the crisis back home in Bungoma, where my parents now reside in retirement. "Brownie" our one resident dairy cow, that has provided our family with milk for years... often at her whim, has been stolen! I listened to my brother's frustration with the local police, and I heard his hopelessness, and frustration. Nothing is going to get done. I scanned my mind for any solid NGOs in my home town that could help with what was now a local security and governance issue in this border town... then I remembered, there was this one I used to work with that would rally community action for such things, they lost funding years ago, and are now a shell of an entity... oh wait, no, there was HIV money, and they "pivoted". The situation seems hopeless. This is a rural border town, the options of getting reliable security services (a privilege we have, I know) is very slim. The only thing I could do therefore is join them. So, I listened, I sighed, I complained with them about the system and left them to "sleep on it" we will regroup in the morning. I went on with my day here in Nairobi.

I got into another call... this time, the folks I needed to speak to, i.e. funders were in the zoom room. They were saying more smart things that are geared towards actualising the ongoing "localisation" agenda. I went home at boiling point when I heard the words "it is time to act". This was my tipping point. Who is acting? when? how? for what exactly? exactly what are folks acting on? do we remember? or are we caught up in defining these new slews of pet words?! I am tired.

I settled down, to think. I was not even in the mood for my usual Asian Drama chill mode (yes! it is my guilty pleasure); I was feeling mentally drained.

So what am I saying with all this... Folks, it is indeed time to act. I agree. However, from my perspective, the recent trend of conversations run the risk of missing the mark and this will slow us down. If I am wrong, I would love to be corrected. Like I said, this is "from where I am seated". Let me give an example from my life to illustrate the urgent actions we can take. Segal Family Foundation (SFF) hired 100% in-country staff to run their country programs. Immediately the staff who are native to these countries were driven and excited to FIND WHO THEY KNOW to be African visionaries. They quickly realised that they could fall into the trap of funding the "usual suspects" that their peers have been funding over and over. Instead, they chose to roll up their sleeves (literally in some cases- I know because I witnessed their process... at least in Kenya); and traversed the country until they found folks like Amisa- they put in the work!. They then turned to me, a self professed agitator of finding the unusual suspects in this space, and a glutton for accelerating organisational growth journeys; and they put trust in the collective team at Warande Advisory Centre and in their expertise, passion and intentions to contribute effectively to their goal of boosting the chosen 19 diverse organisations, to where they are able to attract larger funds. Read about these nineteen organisations in this "Boostars" Introduction Link. In this relationship, we are all figuring things out, e.g-how do you deliver an intense capacity strengthening program 90% virtually, how do we get to a place of comfort for all at the end of one year? there was no template, we co-created them; there were no long periods of "organising"-we agreed on the agenda, chose the best person to lead on a particular function and we just keep going. We are ALL learning as we go along-one step at a time. There is more I could say on this, but that will be another conversation. There are three critical parts of this tripartite between funder, advisor and doer: i) all parties are acknowledged to have power in their spheres of focus/expertise and are acknowledged for the influence they have on the quality of the relationship as well as the outcomes of our joint venture. As a result, we built a culture of mutual respect. ii) True partnership, that consists of mutual goal setting, acknowledgement of spheres of interests for all, an agreed process of continuous learning, where the good, the bad and the ugly are presented in real talk sessions ; and most importantly iii) mutual accountability-where we all report and create spaces for a double loop feedback process on progress and plans ahead. We felt that this is a solid contractual agreement and so far, so good.

What I have described above is what others would call a "risky" venture. I call it a bold, powerful and empowering decision. I have had the privilege to look inside the workings of SFF and seen them admit to where they are also struggling, and then witnessed them listen to folks give them their ideas on how to overcome their challenges-real or perceived, and then, I have watched them go back and translate this input into real tangible adjustments to their strategies, approaches and policies. This relationship is crafted right from the start. They approach their development partners with powerful language- "visionaries" and "rockstars" (I admit, this took me a minute!); P.s. this is not a plug for SFF, I want to illustrate a point :) and I like to give real examples from my life.

What SFF does beautifully, is SEE the people they want to impact for who they are, and more importantly see THEMSELVES as another player in this boat and then find the best position and role in the boat-switching appropriately as needed depending on the length of this river we are sailing and its state-calm or rough. Take note, I am speaking for the country teams that I have had the great honour to work with-ALL of them, not just Kenya even though I have worked with the Kenya team more :). Side note: Yes, I do accept that culture comes from the top-I admire them too, however, I want to speak on those I have a closer proximity to, this time round.

I gave this illustration in order to challenge the ever growing narratives of "Localisation". I understand this to be the goal for many funding organisations. However, this language spotlights us in the global north in a "troubled"/challenged/disempowered light. I would like to suggest a bigger spotlight on the REAL problem. Hear me out. When we had pandemics-HIV/C-19 etc, or calamities and disasters including Famine, flooding, terror attacks... and even undesired states e.g. Poverty, Malnutrition etc... we shouted the name of the problem, dissected the problem and came up with the solutions-we have centred the problem. I would like to centre the problem behind why we still struggle to open the taps of funding to the local actors who so desperately need it. To lump everything into the term "colonisation" feels inadequate to me. It also feels very abstract and leads me to feel hopeless, confused and distracted. This is also very likely a "me" problem. this I admit. I feel disempowered to help address this issue that seems so "long ago" (directly translated from my mother tongue); because this does not feel like it highlights the challenges we face today in the way we face it. "Colonisation" and therefore "de-colonisation" has been philosophised into an impractical state, in my mind. Isn't colonisation a spectrum? does it include neo-colonialism? what about the countries on the continent that were not technically colonised? what about the countries that refuse to identify with this term, and prefer to describe their experience as having been one of "assimilation"... and this is my problem, this narrative, on the continent takes us in the wrong direction. Why did we choose to find a big term, to define something that could be better described and therefore engaged with using simpler terms. This is the same with "localisation, local-led development, etc" WHAT EXACTLY IS THE PROBLEM? ...and then, let us fix it!

Fixing the issue is not about you telling me what the fix is, every time you have a eureka moment-because they are confusing at times. I keep pondering on the movement for "shifting power". I want to argue that all parties need to be powerful. When we purpose to shift this power is why we face reluctance. Human nature does not like to shift things. Certainly not power-this is an idealistic endeavour, it will take too long, and we have agreed that we do not have time for this. I want to offer an alternative- keep your power-no one wants to partner with a powerless person. Instead, lose the supremacy and paternalistic culture, and recognise my power and meet me on a powerful stage... imagine THAT world! We are all powerful and that means we connect powerfully and do powerful things. Having said that, let us not dissect the types & dynamics of power ... that would be distracting from the conversation.

So, can we define what the real problem is? and then, fix it? I echo the words of a sister I recently connected with- Rozella Kennedy; she says it simply: enough with the science-just move the money and trust the people. See example above.